


In the Belly of the Beast

by atamascolily



Category: The Adventures of Sinbad (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, Missing Scene, Rongar needs some fics too!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2019-01-23 06:24:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12500860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atamascolily/pseuds/atamascolily
Summary: Consumed by the Vorgon in Episode 1x12, "The Village Vanishes," Rongar has faith in his friends. Grounded in his training as a warrior, he waits for the end to come and offers what comfort he can.





	In the Belly of the Beast

It happened in the space between heartbeats. 

Inbreath: standing in the pit, shovel in hand, the scent of freshly dug earth in his nostrils, the damp living moisture thick around him, looking up at Firouz, who was perched on the edge frantically gesturing for him to stop digging and come back up to the surface. Outbreath: everything blurred, faded, and vanished, replaced by an empty void filled with diffuse golden light. 

It didn't hurt. That surprised him. He'd always thought leaving the world behind would be painful, but it wasn't. It was just... different. Numb. Empty. 

He'd seen Maeve's hawk, Dermott, vanish attempting to cross the mysterious invisible wall that had circled the village they'd been lured to by some unknown being. They'd tried going over, and that hadn't worked, so he'd tried digging, with the panicked frenzy of an animal caught in a trap. But magic was involved, one that Maeve didn't know how to counter. He should have known that digging wasn't going to be enough to get them out of this one. 

And here he was. Alone. _But not_ , he thought with a touch of sadness, _for long. Whatever got me will get them too, unless they can think of something way to get out of it._

He considered the odds of this. It was certainly a possibility. Firouz had his idiosyncrasies, but he was an inventive genius, particularly under pressure. Sinbad, too, was capable of coming up with quite creative and unorthodox solutions to seemingly insurmountable problems, and Maeve and Doubar both had their considerable strengths to add to the mix. If anyone could find a way past the invisible wall, it was those four. 

But where did that leave him? 

_Stay calm_ , he thought, slowing his breath to control the sudden rise of panic. He listened to his heartbeat, just as he'd been taught as a child, when he'd learned to sit quietly, to watch, to wait, to observe, to _focus_ completely on the task at hand and nothing else. Those lessons had served him well thus far in his well-traveled life, with all its twists and turns and complications. He might have been a failure in many ways, at least as his ancestors would judge, but at least he'd learned these lessons well. 

He was alive. He still had weapons - the bandolier of knives across his chest. He could defend himself, if there was anything in this golden void to defend against. He could cut himself free if there was anything to cut against. 

_How do you get out of a trap with no doors, windows or even walls?_ he wondered. No food, no water, he was going to die here and there was nothing he could do about it- 

He went back to his breathing. Once he was sufficiently calm, he would try exploring and see if there was more to this place than initially met the eye. And at least he wasn't hungry or thirsty right now. 

It certainly wasn't ideal, but at least it was a place to start. 

He began to walk, slowly, wandering aimlessly through the golden void. He was walking on something solid enough, but he couldn't see what it was, and there were no walls or barriers to run into. The golden light filled all the empty space and made it difficult to see what was around him, but it didn't feel like there would be anything to see even if he wasn't half-blinded by it. 

There was no other color than gold. No other sounds but his own breathing. Nothing except for what he carried with him on his person. 

Nothing. 

Nothing. 

Nothing. 

Wait. He saw something move out of the corner of his eye, whirled to face it with battle-hardened reflexes, both hands instinctively reaching for a knife to throw if the situation called for it. 

\--And with a cry, Dermott flew over his head, circled twice, and Rongar instinctively reached out his fist - still wearing the leather gloves he'd put on so he didn't shred his hands with digging - just as he'd seen Maeve do so many times. The hawk landed with a graceful thump, and chittered animatedly. He had the impression of sudden gratitude and relief that mirrored his own feelings at finding a familiar face in this void. 

_And besides, there's no place for a bird to perch in all of this emptiness. He can't even rest the way I can._

"So you're here, too, are you?" 

He turned - which was harder when he had to balance the hawk on his fist - his free hand reaching for the dagger at his chest. An old man, with pale white hair and a blue, flowing tunic, was watching him calmly. Beside him were two turbaned men, one pale, one dark, and a young woman with her head covered, just like the village women he had seen only moments ago. 

He was so startled to see them that he nodded in answer to the man's question with his mind barely registering what he was doing. His free hand clutched at his chest - he'd let the hawk land on his dominant hand, he realized, which made grabbing the hilts much more difficult - so it was just as well none of these people seemed like a threat. He'd lose precious seconds in a real battle, when precious seconds were often the dividing line between life and death. 

_These are all the villagers who were taken by the plague-that-isn't-a-plague,_ he realized with a sudden burst of insight. _These are the ones who disappeared before Dermott. It's not a plague. It's controlled by someone - or something - alive. Something that didn't want us to escape._

Did Sinbad and the others know? Firouz had watched him disappear, just as they'd all watched Dermott disappear, the same way Sinbad had seen the old man disappear when they first arrived in the village. They had to know. They must have put the pieces together. 

_They'll find us. They'll rescue us, if rescue is possible. They saved me from that demon Scratch, when I had given up all hope. They called me "brother". They said they were my family. I have saved their lives countless times over; they have all returned the favor. Sinbad and Doubar are men of honor. Firouz is my deepest friend in all the world now that Mustapha is gone. They will come if they are able to come. I have no doubt of this._

And Maeve.... He thought again of the fury and grief he'd witnessed in her bearing when the hawk had disappeared over the wall. _Maeve will move heaven and earth to find Dermott. If we stay together, we can be rescued together._ He wasn't sure exactly what was going on between the two - Maeve was notoriously tight-lipped about her past prior to joining Sinbad's crew - but her love for the bird was genuine and heart-felt. 

And certainly Dermott was no ordinary bird. Rongar had worked with hawks only a little in his youth - he'd preferred hunting with knives or bow, on foot or on horseback, to falconry - but Dermott was more intelligent and clever - not to mention social - than any bird of prey he'd ever seen. Perhaps it was magic, or perhaps it was something else - he wasn't sure. No falconer he'd ever seen could call out orders to his bird and have it obey the way Dermott did. 

"Look there, behind you! Something's opened up!" 

He turned again, more slowly this time, in case this is a ruse so they can attack him, but they were right: there was an opening in the void. For a moment, they could look out and see the grassy clearing around the village - where he just was moments ago - and is that the village too, in the distance? Maeve is crouched on the ground, her hands spread wide, her face frozen in a rictus of concentration and excitement, and behind her are Sinbad and Firouz, wide-eyed and staring. 

He could see them - can they see him? Do they know he was there, watching them? He reached out with his free hand, gesturing, holding Dermott up so they can see the hawk is here, too... and as quickly as it arrived, the opening faded, and there was only golden light and emptiness again. 

"What was that?" one of the young men asked, and Rongar could only shrug in response. The truth is too complicated to explain, particularly when one of his hands is already occupied. He stroked Dermott's belly, in the affectionate way he's seen Maeve do, and the bird let him do it, standing calmly and proudly on his fist. 

_They saw us. They know we're here. They'll find us._ Now the only thing left to do was to be patient. 

*** 

Things did not stay quiet for long. More and more villagers began appearing out of the air, confused and disoriented. Tearfilled reunions and frantic chatter filled the air, and he was able to listen in and piece together what was happening back in the real world and what his friends were up to. 

Of course, a few minutes later, Firouz appeared, too, and then the torrent of words (and hugs; Firouz was unhappy to be trapped here, but delighted to see him) were endless. "Rongar! Dermott! Maeve used her magic to show us that you were still alive! We've been consumed by the Vorgon, a monster that drains peoples' life energy and uses it to power magic like the invisible wall! Somebody has to kill it in order for us to get free! Maeve tried to burn a hole in the wall, and -" 

Of course, that was the moment that Maeve herself popped into existence, sprawled on the ground next to the empty space where Firouz was standing. She was shaking and trembling and fighting back tears. "Dermott!" she screamed, and reached out to the hawk. It took her a moment's fumbling to get out her gauntlet and take Dermott off Rongar's fist and onto her own. 

"I was trying to use magic to fight the Vorgon," she mumbled. "I thought I was fighting it, but it was just draining everybody else to counter my attack - and then it took me, too - " 

Firouz patted her shoulder awkwardly. "It's okay, Maeve. It's okay. There was no way you could have known that." 

"Sinbad knew," she said, her face clenched with pain that was more emotional than physical. "I was so upset - I didn't listen - " 

She was interrupted by Doubar's sudden appearance. He was grimmer than Rongar had ever seen him. "Sinbad's the only one left now in the village now. Night is falling. If he can't stop the Vorgon, no one can." 

Rongar hadn't thought Maeve could get any more upset. He was wrong. "But the Vorgon walks at night and if something happens to Sinbad, we'll all die here!" she cried. 

"I think he's reserved a special fate for Sinbad," Doubar said quietly. "But he doesn't know my little brother! If anyone can get us out of this impossible situation, it's Sinbad!" He laughed heartily, though it sounded a little forced to Rongar's ear. "Is there anything to eat or drink in this godforsaken place?" 

"Nothing I've seen," Firouz said, waving vaguely around him. "Rongar? You see anything edible?" 

Rongar shook his head absently, his mind going over what his companions had told him. _So it's down to the captain now to save us all._ Somehow, that didn't scare him. A great expansive calm swelled up within him. There was really nothing to do now but wait. One way or another, it would end soon. 

Meanwhile, Maeve was crying quietly and refusing Doubar and Firouz's entreaties. The two men eventually gave up and left her to her own devices, talking and laughing with the villagers instead. Rongar stood quietly nearby, listening to the rise and fall of his heartbeat and silently offering her what peace he could. 

Even had he been capable of speech at this moment, he wouldn't have said anything. It was a mistake to think that words could solve the deeper problems of the human heart, anyway. Sometimes the most important thing to do was to sit quietly and let people come to their own resolutions. 

"Thanks, Rongar," she said after a while, not looking at him, but calm enough now to acknowledge his presence and express her gratitude for it. He nodded slowly, even though he knew she couldn't see it. 

He knew what she was wrestling with, even if she wouldn't admit it to herself - she was grieving what she saw as her personal failures, and blaming herself for the predicament they were all in, even the things that had nothing to do with her. He'd watched her go through this often enough over the last few months since she'd joined Sinbad's crew. But her grief and self-loathing was rawer and deeper than he'd seen it in a long time. 

It wasn't just that magic had failed her. It wasn't just that they might all die soon, trapped here in the belly of the beast. It was that she was in love with Sinbad, and she feared for his safety, and there was nothing she could do to help him now. 

Even if Rongar could have told her this, she wouldn't have believed him. People just had to realize some things on their own. 

Together, they stood quietly and waited for the end to come. 

*** 

It happened in the space between heartbeats. 

Inbreath: standing in the empty void, surrounded by all but one of his companions (not to mention the population of the entire village), lost in his own thoughts and wondering if this particular breath would be the last. Outbreath: everything blurred, faded, and vanished - and suddenly, it was twilight and they were standing in the grassy field on the edge of the village, and everything was illuminated by the roaring bonfire a few dozen meters away. 

And there was Sinbad, standing there alone, the expression of surprise and delight on his face mirroring their own. 

Maeve was startled enough to send Dermott flying off her fist, and he took off with a rattling cry, clearly relieved to be back in the embrace of the familiar blue sky. Maeve ran to Sinbad, threw her arms around him and - 

-and somehow one thing lead to another and they were _kissing_ \- 

Rongar, who had rushed over to Doubar and Firouz, stopped and stared. So did the other two men. Even the excited chatter of the villagers stalled for a second as everyone looked over to witness the reunion- 

_It's about damn time,_ Rongar thought absently, watching them, his eyebrows raised. After all those months of snapping at each other, to have it come to a head like this was something of a relief - 

And then, as quickly as it had come, Maeve and Sinbad abruptly pulled back, staring at each other in abject horror. They pushed each other away, awkwardly shaking hands, clearly trying to pretend that the previous moments had never happened - and with a tremendous guffaw, Doubar swept forward towards his younger brother (who had managed to save all their lives yet again), leading Firouz, Rongar and all of the  
villagers back to the village with an explosion of chatter and laughter. 

Later that evening, at the inevitable feasting that followed in the village commons, they heard the harrowing tale of Sinbad's heroism - how their captain had outwitted and tricked the Vorgon into emerging in the evening shadows, and lured the monster into Firouz's catapult ("I told you my invention would solve the problem!" Firouz beamed) and vaulted it up into the last rays of the setting sun angled over the valley. Clever. Very clever. Rongar didn't think anybody else could have snatched a victory so narrowly from the jaws of defeat. _But I am so glad that he did!_ he thought as Sinbad wrapped up his tale to the thunderous applause of all present. 

A good captain. A good man. In denial about his feelings for Maeve, of course - the two were studiously polite to each other the whole evening and avoided eye contact, but stared when they thought the other person wasn't looking. They could pretend all they wanted but everybody knew the truth. Although it was clearly going to take more than a near-death experience for those two to admit it. 

A familiar chittering noise overhead made him turn his face to where Dermott was perched on the edge of a pavilion. Rongar grinned at the hawk, tilted his head to indicate Maeve and Sinbad sitting next to each other, and winked. 

It was dark, and hard to be sure in the firelight, but he thought Dermott might have winked back. 


End file.
